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Although its not a big thing here in Australia
Our girls thought it would be fun to join in..
So we tied some orange balloons to the gate
Its raining...
a lot...
So they may not come to empty our lolly jars
but thats ok
cause we are having FUN!
AND
dont we just love our Shabby pink roses Witches hat..
Happy Halloween....
In the rain...
Had a bit of a "meeting..." here at Greystanes this week..
Always fabulous to sit around a table with like minded people...
Some lovely flowers were brought..
and yummy food eaten
and the house was actually tidy for one brief shining moment...
And of course we laughed our heads off..
thanks for a lovely day ladies...
An unusual find this week..
All wrapped up in bubblewrap
And tucked away unloved in someones shed.
sold for a song, its very old, damaged and a little wet..
An 1800's picture frame with Gesso detail
Certainly not perfect by any means but I have a little plan for this beauty for the front entry of Greystanes...
I have a busy weekend ahead..
Our garden is quite old so each spring we are lucky to have a field of bulbs bursting through in the front yard where the horses used to be kept..
I thought it was a good time to bring some of those beautiful blooms inside ~ or onto the Verandah as the case may be...
A pitcher full of bluebells to grace the entry..
and some of these red delights ( I still do not know the name of these flowers ~ can anyone help at all)?
in some vintage milk bottles and my clay tags
Isn't it lovely when you sew?
Isn't it even better when you get the machine out and actually use it?
Well yesterday was the day
I finished my project in a day
I mean it really isn't a problem once you get started is it?
In fact it's actually quite enjoyable...
I wanted to make this...
A floaty, voluminous bed skirt,
or a slip cover for the bed base
Not a pinch pleat one..
Not a gathered one that finishes 5 inches short of the floor
See that is the problem with old beds
They are too high for modern linens
So I had to make my own bedskirt
That draped
and pooled
Like this
It took a while but I can tick it off the list
Next are cushions
But I had to pack the machine up again
So bare with me wont you, it could be a while...
Want to know how to make a draped pooled bed skirt?
Buy floaty drapy fabric
Use an old modern day bed skirt
Gather and sew the floaty draped pooley material over the top of the hopelessly modern and short skirt..
Too easy
Well ok a little fiddly cause it is big and a little hard to maneurver
but stick with it those of you have old high beds
You know you want it!
and now for my shameless promotion of my Time Worn Style store...
and a little Industrial chic cause don't we love it?!
I've joined....
Cause that skirt is a bit of a slip cover for the bed!
One thing (amongst many) that I do really love about living on our Mountain here in Victoria, Australia is Spring.
To put it mildly it is AMAZING
It just bursts with colour, life and sun (with smatterings of rain)
This year we were again lucky to have a few open gardens close to home...
The one I am featuring here is my favourite and belongs to a neighbour of ours just down the road.
We strolled down to this garden on the weekend ~ I'll let the pictures do the talking
Keep in mind that when they purchased this property it was covered in blackberry, holly and weeds...
(most photos taken by our youngest girl who is loving photography at the moment)
The trough garden, loved this area...
This kookaburra was getting narky cause the owners hadn't given him his minced meat yet... (he gets fed at our house too so he's a demanding little fella!)
You know like when you have a cat that belongs to the street and gets weirdly fat
Cause he's eating at three different homes.
This kookie is like that...
I think thats why he laughs so much..
and of course we tiptoed through the tulips...
I'm thinking I would like a lawn like that (once i get rid of the onion weed..)
and a garden shed with leadlight windows ~ dreaming...
and some garden paths without weeds in them like this...
my youngest commented, well at least we have the hedges...
did I mention how I want that lawn?...
and elegant steps like these?...
and maybe a little greenhouse for those rare woodland plants..
And those rough Australian tree ferns...
Yes feeling very inspired after visiting our neighbours garden..
They are only a few houses down from us..
So I figure
If they can do it.
We can do it.
It only took them 30 years..
I had better get started...
Alicia
This was the front entrance to Greystanes...
Just after we removed the horrid 1980's Laura Ashley blurk wallpaper...
the clotted cream yellow trims were still there...
Before
Before
During...
After....
The door hasnt been painted because well
I want to replace it.
Its too old and it sticks and the wonky old leadlight is falling out...
Its on the list
The list is a long one
I think everyone has a list like that...
and because we have been finishing off this front room
I have been clearing out treasures to my ebay store
so I dont have to clutter it up again..
Like this little beauty..
and this...
and who wouldn't want a French enamel ware candlestick holder hmmm?
My so called "decorating style" is a hard one to put in a box..
I've tried a few times to put a label on it
with no success
I did start out rather "shabby chic"
but seem to have metamorphosed into something else
So now I like to call myself a "Vintage Merchant" (thanks Daph and Jen for that label) who decorates her home with an eclectic style.
some might think it doesnt work
but I like it
the husband doesn't notice
and the kids don't care
see everyones happy!
But one thing I rooley rooley like is a bit of this...
Industrial chic..
You can add it anywhere, mix it up
End up working the whole kitchen with it...
Make a very practical outdoor setting with it..
add a few little touches to the mud room with it, even use a paint spattered boot ~ why not?...
an old house sign off the side of the road for a wall...
or a house sign and old medical cabinet to a bathroom..
pull yourself a drink and go visit some other junkin' wonders,
it will be worth the trip!
One of the special things about living on our Mountain in Australia is picking the youngest up from school and coming home to some of these lovelies sitting on our Verandah rails..
This is a King Parrot and he likes our Apples, if he asks, we give!
For a wild bird they are quite tame, they take the food from our hands, I think the tourists feed them seeds down the road at the park.
I do love their visits to our home though, one advantage of living near a forest.
People who know me well, also know that I love to rearrange furniture, its a pleasant past time to have in my opinion, you just have to have lots of tips on how to not scratch your wooden floor ~
* I have lots of old woollen blankets, maneuver your furniture on top of one (folded in half) and it slides to its next position ~ easy! You can also use old towels, carpet squares etc
* have a partner with strong muscly arms who will do it for you (this is my personal preference, also easy on the eyes...)
SO when I had to move this piece of furniture out of its original spot, due to a wall switch having to be replaced...(by "I" I do mean our lovely electrician and myself who has lots of good ideas including using the carpet square to move a heavy armoire, but that is another story..)
It reminded me how I loved the lines of this Antique Armoire, it was sitting in a recess and you couldnt see the sides...
So I looked in the front room and thought it was time for a swapsies with the desk..
Took a little time and input from members of the family and friends (some interested most not..) as to have it flush against the wall or...
have it on an angle so you can see the SIDES...
swapped the rugs around too...
I think it works better....
and now the desk is in the recess..(this used to be part of Greystanes original kitchen which has since been moved..)
This gorgeous American desk ( made in Cincinnati, Ohio, a loooong way from home now residing in Australia!) comes in three parts so took a little bit of work to move..
To this...
Added a few of my favourite treasures ~ might take a few away, perhaps a little too much, what do you think??
and inside..
and now for the rest of the house, cause what you don't see in the photos is all the stuff I pushed to one side...
Alicia
Oh and do check out my ebay store cause I have found more treasures to move on, too much here to stay!
the sweetest Royal Harvey side plates..
A lovely pink German "Father" cup...
And can you ever have too many cherubs in your home??
Finally had a bit of a "day off" today, by that I mean I didnt have to work at my business but I still had to do work around the house..
When you have a hundred year old house
you dont really get time off
because I am SURE it has a life of its own and continues to grow and change without me doing a thing to it
anyway....
SO
after bashing the inside corner of the roof of the family room to shut the possoms up who have suddenly realised its spring and obviously feel their own sap rising...
I started picking and putting
and worked my way into the girls rooms..
threw the feather quilts into the Lloyd loom trunk at the end of the bed..
put the heavy winter jackets into the suitcases on top of the wardrobe..
(see that basket chandelier.. that was in my own room when I was but a wee child. Mum let me take it with me when she sold the family home ~ my chandelier obsession started VERY young...)
Then I shook out and hung up the super fluffy lace infested mosquito net ~ our pond is full of wrigglers, soon they will have wings..
but ran out of steam by the time I got to the dressing table..
I mean just how many flavoured chap sticks does a 10 year old need??
So this is the cluttered dressing table shot..
Then onto the next bedroom...
Remember these tissue poms made by Tamarah and Matt?
Well this is where some of the multitudes ended up..
On my most favourite windows in the house
I REALLY want to decorate this room
BADLY
but my teen wont let me
I have the sads about that
But I have sneaked a few things in ... antique bed, day bed and quilt for one
And I mean you gotta have an Axminster on the floor to keep the draughts out.
I had other plans
but my Teen wont let me
**pout**
on the hills overlooking Melbourne..
Which we actually can see now some of our hedges have been cut down and the light is pouring in again..
Found some great little treasures this week to help out with some entertaining issues we have been having..
Something simple with wood and steel...
Have been thinking for a while about those old stools you used to see at Primary School in the Art Room. Beautiful wood, SO functional and they stack!
So was very happy to find not one or two but Fifteen of these beauties looking for a home..
I think our seating problems might be over..
Cant wait for the weather to warm up a little bit more and start using our Verandah again..
Our Kookaburras think its time, they have been hanging around waiting for a few scraps from the table, not quite yet fellas, be patient!
How's the serenity??
As much as I am enjoying the sleek simple lines of a bit of Industrial, I still havent forgotten my first love of Roses and Crystal..
Really love this gorgeous Comport I found this week..
oh and this most stunning petite mirror..
Come and get 'em over here at my ebay store
Alicia
I've had this very very old wire basket for quite some time
But was never sure what to do with it.
Its funny how things happen really..
I was cleaning the front room and had to move a large lot of silver plate to clean a table underneath..
So I put them in the old wire basket..
and I thought it looked pretty good...
So then I had to think about where I could display this sculpture of silver and wire..
This lovely old Lloyd Loom style table/cabinet is one of my early acquisitions..
Its one of my most favourite pieces with its original old appliques..
and its just so darn creative in the way it opens and closes with its little metal hook..
Thought I might put these two together and see how it looked..
But wait theres more...
How about an old French Metal sign placed nearby?..
and an Antique Roses painting for a bit of height...
Just wanted to say Thankyou to those who left a comment, phoned, text messaged, face booked regarding our little Furbaby Genevieve's passing...
Its amazing what an impact a little dog can make in ones life, those who have loved pets understand this huge void they leave behind..
its not an easy thing to see them go
especially when they grew up with your children too..
went on holidays with the family..
Sat in the passenger seat whilst treasure hunting...
Went on hour long walks through the bushland with you
Stayed inside the house with you, not outside in a kennel...
and sat under your chair whilst you typed away on your computer..
No its not easy to see them go
Our little loved pets
